Comment by lizzard

Some other fabulous Chinese novels, not really obscure as they are the most famous novels in China, but not well known to English speaking readers: Dream of Red Mansions/Story of the Stone, an epic about two families and the decline of their fortunes; The Scholars, another 18th century long book of linked stories that's basically political satire; and Outlaws of the Marsh/The Water Margin, a long series of linked tales about bandits that's a little bit Robin-Hoodish as it's really about their political rebellion.